City of Calcutta

Kolkata is the new name of Calcutta city; it's the third largest metropolitan city of India and is the capital of West Bengal State, West Bengal is located in eastern of the country; Calcutta was derived from Kalikata, one of the three villages that existed there before the arrival of the British. The city lies is on the east bank of the Hooghly River, more than 4 million of people live there. Poverty, pollution, traffic and urbanization are some problems that Calcutta has, city that grew in the mangrove swamps of the Hooghly River.

Calcutta was the first capital of British Raj, and the place where one of the few socialist government was democratically elected. Calcutta has Many denominations, it is called; Cultural Capital of India, the City of Processions, City of Joy and is home of Mother Teresa, who is some of the famous personalities of the world. Rabindranath Tagore is other famous personality; he won the literature’s Novel Prize in 1913 and founded the Visva Bharati University.

Calcutta city has a great British influence in its architecture as well in its style, beautiful monuments, and government buildings decorating the city, old colonial style are showed in mansions and bungalows. You can find tourist attractive like Victoria Memorial, Indian Museum, Marble Palace, Fort William, Eden Garden, Birla Planetarium, Kali Mandir, Howrah Bridge, St. Paul’s Cathedral and others.

Calcutta also has many natural places, for example the Botanical Garden, forest, natural pools, lakes and river, in the three last ones, Bengalis go to swim and have a free time moment especially on Saturdays. But Calcutta also has other face where the people live with the poverty, pollution and crowded urbanizations.

The city has a tropical climate, the summers are very hot and humid, and its temperature is over 40 º C, it is in May and June, winter are more fresh but it is for two months approximately in December and January with 12 ºC – 14 ºC of temperature. Rains lash the city between June and September.